Toledo Rocket Hall of Fame football player and Swanton High School grad Emerson Cole passed away Tuesday at 91.
Family members say he died at Flower Hospital after battling an illness.
Cole was inducted into the UT hall of fame in 1984, and he played for the Rockets from 1947-49. Cole was honorable mention All-Ohio as a sophomore, second-team All-Ohio as a junior, and first-team All-Ohio senior year, as well as honorable mention All-American.
Cole also spent time in the NFL with the Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns.He was the first black player to be drafted by the Browns in 1950.
After serving as a deputy with the Lucas County Sheriff's Office, Cole served as director of the Ohio Civil Rights Commission in 1959.
